Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 28

Devanagari script

दृष्टवान्नर्मदां देवीं मृगकृष्णाम्बरां पुनः । सधूमाशनिनिर्ह्रादैर्वहन्तीं सप्तधा तदा

Transliteration

dṛṣṭavānnarmadāṃ devīṃ mṛgakṛṣṇāmbarāṃ punaḥ | sadhūmāśaninirhrādairvahantīṃ saptadhā tadā

Translation

Je revis la déesse Narmadā, revêtue d’une sombre peau de daim ; alors elle se rua en sept courants, accompagnée de tonnerres enfumés et du fracas de l’éclair.

Word by Word

• दृष्टवान्: having seen
• दृष्टवान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दृष्टवत् (कृदन्त; √दृश्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular); भूतकाले कर्तरि कृदन्त (past active participle)

• नर्मदाम्: Narmadā
• नर्मदाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (f.), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular)

• देवीम्: the goddess
• देवीम्: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (f.), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular)

• मृग-कृष्ण-अम्बराम्: wearing a black deer-skin garment
• मृग-कृष्ण-अम्बराम्: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृग (प्रातिपदिक) + कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + अम्बर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (f.), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरावृत्तिवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: again)

• स-धूम-आशनि-निर्ह्रादैः: with thunderous roars of smoky lightning
• स-धूम-आशनि-निर्ह्रादैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स (प्रातिपदिक) + धूम (प्रातिपदिक) + आशनि (प्रातिपदिक) + निर्ह्राद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (plural)

• वहन्तीम्: flowing/carrying
• वहन्तीम्: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वहन्त् (कृदन्त; √वह्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (f.), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); वर्तमानकाले कर्तरि कृदन्त (present active participle)

• सप्तधा: in seven streams / sevenfold
• सप्तधा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सप्तधा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of manner: sevenfold)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā/Narmadā (Sapta-dhārā manifestation)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Royal addressee (rājasattama)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Narmadā Devī appears wearing dark deerskin, surging in seven streams amid smoky thunder and lightning’s roar.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā (Revā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The sacred river is not merely geography but a divine power that can manifest in many forms—gentle for purification and fierce for cosmic correction.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Narmadā (Revā) herself is the tīrtha-deity being glorified, presented in a dramatic sevenfold manifestation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit prescription appears; the verse contributes to the river’s māhātmya by portraying her divine potency.